


Two Divided By Zero

by PaintingWithWords (paint_with_words)



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Action, Alternate Universe - Hackers, Betrayal, Brief Mention of Blood, Character's Name Spelled as Viktor, Gen, Gun Violence, Hacking, Illegal Activities, Illustrated, Intrigue, M/M, Other, Revenge, deal gone wrong
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-09
Updated: 2018-04-09
Packaged: 2019-04-20 10:18:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,796
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14258841
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/paint_with_words/pseuds/PaintingWithWords
Summary: “So, you guys down with the job?” Leo said, returning his phone to his jacket pocket.  Phichit turned to look at him, all business.“Depends,” Phichit said, resting his elbows on the table.  “Security at a university is hard core.  Getting past it to change Guang Hong’s grades this semester isn’t going to easy.  It’ll take time to crack the system, get into the registrar’s database and make the changes.  It’s gonna cost you.  A lot.”  Phichit paused and took a sip of his tea and placed it back on the table.  “You good for it?”“Of course,” Leo said, sounding insulted.  “When am I not?”“Why do you want to change your grades, Guang Hong?” Yuuri asked quietly, his mask still in place.  Leo and Guang Hong both turned to look at Yuuri.“I- I’m failing,” Guang Hong whispered.“Since when is a 3.7 failing?” Yuuri murmured, pinning Guang Hong with his intense gaze.





	Two Divided By Zero

**Author's Note:**

  * For [topcatnikki](https://archiveofourown.org/users/topcatnikki/gifts), [Dokihearts](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dokihearts/gifts).



> Written for [Live and Love Big Bang](https://liveloveyoibang.tumblr.com/). We're doing smaller prompts at the moment, bings rather than bangs, to help us warm up for the main event. The wonderful art was done by the lovely [Hentipie](https://hentipie.tumblr.com). My awesome beta, [topcatnikki](https://archiveofourown.org/users/topcatnikki/pseuds/topcatnikki/works), got a lot done in a really short amount of time and I am in her debt. Thank you both so much, my dears!
> 
> You can read more bings and see more wonderful art [here](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/liveloveyoibing). 
> 
> Comments are gold...

The noodle house where they’d agreed to meet was a dingy little hole in the wall.  A thin layer of grease coated everything, from the tables to the booths to the laminated menus the waiter handed them when they came in.  Viktor knew Yuuri had chosen the restaurant because they didn’t have cameras, but he wished it was cleaner.  He watched the patrons on the other side of the restaurant busily slurping their steaming bowls of noodles and wondered how anyone could willingly eat here.

Next to him, Yuuri kept his eyes on the door, fingers nervously twirling a pair of disposable wooden chopsticks.  He looked ready to bolt and run at any moment.  After spending a few months with him, Viktor knew this was how Yuuri was when it was time to finalize things, but it still made him uneasy.  On the other side of the table, Phichit eyed the menu, looking bored.

“They’re here,” Yuuri murmured from underneath his surgical mask, setting the chopsticks down.  

“Good,” Phichit said, not looking up.  “Let’s get this over with and go someplace where I can stomach the food.”

Viktor smiled and turned to look towards the doors, where Leo was holding the door open for Guang Hong.  Immediately, he knew something wasn’t right. 

The previous two times they’d met, Leo had been surly, regarding him with barely concealed distrust, and he let it be known that he didn’t like dealing with a Russian.  Now, Leo was smiling, striding into the restaurant like someone without a care.  Guang Hong, who had always been the more outgoing of the two, looked like he was trying to shrink into his coat.  

Viktor almost made Yuuri and Phichit get up right then and leave.  But they’d had previous interactions with Guang Hong and Leo and they didn’t seem bothered.  Perhaps they reversed roles when it was time to seal the deal.  Viktor took a deep breath and settled back in the grimy booth.  If Yuuri and Phichit didn’t see anything wrong, then he didn’t need to fuck it up.

Phichit turned and looked at Leo and Guang Hong, smiling as he gave them a little upwards nod of the head.  Leo returned the gesture, but Guang Hong frowned and looked down. 

“Something’s wrong,” Yuuri muttered under his breath, the mask hiding the movement of his mouth.  Phichit made a noise of agreement, the smile never leaving his face.  Viktor wanted to ask what was going on, but there was no time.  Phichit got up to let Leo and Guang Hong slide into the booth, then sat back down on the outside.

Just as Phichit was about to speak, the waiter brought the tea Yuuri ordered when they arrived.  Viktor smiled as a cup was handed to him but didn’t drink. 

The waiter looked at Leo and Guang Hong.  “You two need menus?” 

“They can have mine,” Phichit said, passing his menu to Leo.  “I think we’re going to need a little more time to decide, okay?”

Scowling, the waiter headed back towards the kitchen.

Once the waiter was gone from sight, Leo let the menu drop to the table and leaned back in the booth, smiling.  Under the table, Yuuri nudged Viktor’s thigh.  Viktor glanced at Yuuri, wondering why Yuuri would choose now of all times to be affectionate, but Yuuri wasn’t looking at him.  Yuuri was staring at Leo and pulling his knit cap down further on his head.  It looked like he might be biting his lips under the mask, but it was hard to tell.  Was Yuuri trying to warn him?  Viktor nudged him back, letting him know he was ready. 

“Okay guys, you know the drill,” Phichit said, his smile fading.  “Whip ‘em out.”

Both of the new arrivals placed their phones on the table.  Yuuri took Guang Hong’s, which he flipped over and opened with ease.  Phichit did the same with Leo’s phone, nodding once the back was off.  Viktor could see that the phones lacked batteries and felt a little better, but not much.  Phichit snapped Leo’s phone back together and gave it to him as Yuuri handed Guang Hong’s back.

“So, you guys down with the job?” Leo said, returning his phone to his jacket pocket.  Phichit turned to look at him, all business.

“Depends,” Phichit said, resting his elbows on the table.  “Security at a university is hard core.  Getting past it to change Guang Hong’s grades this semester isn’t going to easy.  It’ll take time to crack the system, get into the registrar’s database and make the changes.  It’s gonna cost you.  A lot.”  Phichit paused and took a sip of his tea and placed it back on the table.  “You good for it?”

“Of course,” Leo said, sounding insulted.  “When am I not?”

“Why do you want to change your grades, Guang Hong?” Yuuri asked quietly, his mask still in place.  Leo and Guang Hong both turned to look at Yuuri. 

“I- I’m failing,” Guang Hong whispered.  “If I fail and get kicked out, they’ll revoke my student visa and send me home.”

“Since when is a 3.7 failing?” Yuuri murmured, pinning Guang Hong with his intense gaze.  “You failed one physics exam at the beginning of the semester, but most of your class failed that test and the professor curved the exam.  That’s not enough to get you kicked out.”

“H-how do you know that?” Guang Hong gasped, eyes going wide. “Grades haven’t gone to the registrar’s office yet!  Did you-?  Oh my God…”

“You’re right, the grades haven’t been turned in yet,” Yuuri confirmed, quiet and cold.  “But they’re on your professor’s computer.  She didn’t install the latest security update.  I hacked her last week, in an afternoon.  It was easy.  And you’re lying.”

Viktor felt his pulse race.  He didn’t like this game, not one bit.  He shot a glance at Leo to find him glaring at Yuuri, steely-eyed and determined.

“Why are we really here tonight?” Phichit asked, turning on the two next to him.  “What do you really want from us?”

Leo snorted and shook his head.  “You guys used to be alright, you know?” he muttered.  “But since you started hanging around with this troll-” he glared at Viktor- “you can’t be trusted.”  

Phichit was about to say something else when he stopped and stared wide-eyed at Leo.  Viktor thought he heard something rattle and buzz against the back of a seat.  Apparently Yuuri heard it too, because he sat back and braced his hands against the table.

“What the fuck was that _vibration_?” Phichit hissed.  “And don’t even try to lie because I _felt_ it, you fucker!  You have another phone on you, don’t you?”

“Fuck you,” Leo muttered, reaching into his back pocket.  Viktor thought he’d pull out a second phone, but instead he withdrew a folded up piece of paper.  If that piece of paper was what he thought it was-

“Do y’all even really know who he is?” Leo said, unfolding the paper and throwing it on the table.  “Or are you gonna call this shit fake news?”

Out of the corner of his eye, Viktor saw a picture of him with longer hair, his name and the words WANTED and INTERPOL standing out in bold face on the page.  A list of crimes, invented and real, were listed in smaller print underneath his picture.  He didn’t need to look at it to know what it said.  

“I had a hunch about you,” Leo snarled, looking at Viktor, “so I looked you up.  It took a little time, but my hunch was right.  He’s dangerous, guys, and if you’re working with him, then so are you.”

“What the fuck have you done?” Phichit growled as he grabbed Leo by the front of his jacket and pulled him close.  “I swear to God-”

“The cops are on the way,” Leo said, smiling into Phichit’s face.  “They’ll be here any minute.  This country’s fucked up enough as it is.  We don’t need outside help.  You’re all going down.”

Yuuri shot out of the booth and pulled Viktor out with him.  Guang Hong had shrunk into the corner, the telltale glow from a phone in his hand lighting up his pale face.  Viktor looked out the front of the restaurant to see a patrol car slowly rolling down the street.  He nudged Yuuri’s shoulder and pointed outside.

“Screw this!” Yuuri barked at Phichit, motioning towards the windows.  “We need to go!  Now!”

Phichit saw the car and cursed, letting go of Leo as he slid out of the seat.  Leo made a grab for the back of Phichit’s coat, but Viktor tossed Yuuri’s untouched cup of tea in Leo’s face.  Immediately, Leo screamed and threw his hands over his burned face.  Phichit ran straight for the kitchen.   

“Come on!” Yuuri yelped, grabbing Viktor’s sleeve and pulling him along.  Viktor took the lead and ran after Phichit, barreling through the swinging door into the kitchen.  Behind him, he heard something crash to the floor.  Never breaking stride, he glanced over his shoulder to see Yuuri had pulled a rack of pots down behind him, creating an obstacle for any pursuers.  He turned back to see Phichit hit the back door at a dead run, barely slowing down as he bolted into the alley.

Viktor followed, hot on Phichit’s heels as they ran, Yuuri right behind him.  At the end of the alley, a couple of workers were unloading a delivery van.  White smoke billowed from the exhaust.  

“Take the van!” Viktor yelled.  The workers saw them coming and moved to get out of the way.  Phichit leapt into the driver’s seat and Viktor dove into the back, shoving boxes out into the alley to make room for Yuuri.  As soon as Yuuri jumped into the back, Viktor slammed the doors shut.

“We’re in!   _Go_!”

Phichit hit the gas and the van shot forward.  Viktor could hear people outside screaming at them as he ducked down low, pulling Yuuri down on the floor next to him.

They pulled out into the street and Viktor heard the blast of a horn and the squeal of brakes, both of which sounded like they were right outside the van.  Phichit swore and swerved but kept going.  Beside him, Yuuri cowered on the floor, his breath harsh and loud in the small space.

“We’re okay,” Viktor gasped as he reached out and squeezed Yuuri’s hand.  He tried to project a calm he didn’t feel for Yuuri’s sake.  But it was hard to be calm with Phichit swearing like a sailor and veering madly through traffic.  

They hadn’t gone far before the wail of a siren began to catch up to them.  Viktor dared to peek out of the back window, but saw nothing. 

“Where’s it coming from?” he asked, hoping Phichit could see something he couldn’t.

“I don’t know!” Phichit yelled.  The whine of the siren got louder as they drove.

“You’ve got to go faster!” Viktor urged.  “They’re gaining on us!”

“What the fuck do you-” Phichit began, only to yelp as a car forced them up onto the sidewalk and into something solid enough to bring them to an abrupt stop.  Viktor and Yuuri slid forward, hitting the seats in front of them. 

“The cops!” Phichit yelled, scrambling out of his seatbelt and climbing into the back with them.  “They’re right outside!”

Viktor could see the telltale flashes of red and blue through the windows, lighting up the night.  Viktor threw open the back doors and jumped out.  Yuuri and Phichit followed him.  He raced past the patrol car that had forced them over, aware that the driver’s door was opening and someone was getting out.  Viktor ran, looking for a side street or a back alley to turn down.  He could hear Yuuri and Phichit pelting down the sidewalk behind him. 

“Stop!” a woman called out.  “You’re all under arrest!”

He glanced back and saw that Yuuri and Phichit were still running.  Yuuri urgently pointed to his right, motioning for Viktor to go that way.  They were almost there, just a few more feet to the intersection-

A loud bang echoed off the walls of the buildings around them.  Viktor heard something thud into the sidewalk a few feet ahead of him, but didn’t stop.  He turned and caught sight of Yuuri and Phichit running behind him.  And running behind Yuuri and Phichit was the police officer.

Viktor saw a line of taxis waiting on the side of the road in front of him.  He ran up to the first one and opened the door.  Classical music filled the vehicle.  The driver, an elderly man, turned to look at him.

“Are you available?” he blurted, casting a furtive glance back at Yuuri and Phichit as they came around the corner.

“Yes,” the man said in an achingly familiar accent, one he hadn’t heard in entirely too long.

“Thank God,” Viktor said as he got in.  “Two more are coming.”

Yuuri and Phichit slid into the back seat next to Viktor, Phichit slamming the door shut as he got in.

“She’s right behind up!” panted Yuuri.  “We need to… go…”

They pulled out into traffic as the officer turned onto the street.  

“Where to?” the driver asked.  Phichit rattled off an address Viktor didn’t recognize and they headed off into the night.

Viktor took a deep breath, winded from all the exertion he’d been through.  As he caught his breath, his gaze fell on the driver’s nameplate- Yakov Feltsman- and he noticed a copy of the local Russian community newspaper was folded up in the front seat.  

“Are you from Russia?” Viktor asked the driver in Russian.  The driver eyed him in the rear view mirror.

“Yes,” the driver- Yakov- replied.  “Are you?”

Viktor smiled.  Maybe they would make it out of this after all.

“Yes,” Viktor replied, “I’ve been here for a few months and had nothing but trouble.”

“So I see,” Yakov said.  “There is nothing but trouble for us here now, I’m afraid.  Tell me, do you need help?”

“Yes,” Viktor said.  “Yes we do.”

“What’s going on?  What’s he saying?” Phichit asked.  At the same time, Yakov said, “Don’t worry.  I can help you.”

“We’re getting help,” Viktor said.  “Everything’s going to be alright.”

Yakov turned down the music and hit a button on his phone, cradled in a holder on the dashboard, and put it on speaker.  Yuuri tensed next to him, but said nothing.  Right now, the phone was a necessary evil and they all knew it.  The call connected on the third ring.

“Georgi,” Yakov said, still using Russian, “I’ve got a son of our mutual mother who is in need of some assistance.  He’s got a couple of friends with him.  Where can you meet us?”

Arrangements were quickly made to meet at a local park.  Viktor only half-listened, grateful that being Russian was actually working in his favor for once.  He reached out and patted Yuuri’s knee, letting his hand rest there.  Yuuri’s hand came up to cover his, making him smile.

About half an hour later, they turned into a residential neighborhood.  They turned down several more streets and a small park appeared in front of them.  In the parking lot sat an old and battered car.  At first, Viktor thought it was abandoned.  They pulled up across from it and a man, apparently Yakov’s friend Georgi, got out and walked over to their taxi.  

Viktor paid Yakov, giving him a handsome tip, as they got out of the taxi.  Yakov tried to wave it off, but Viktor was insistent.

“You helped us so much tonight,” he said quietly.  “Without your help, I don’t know where we’d be.  Is there anything-”

“Viktor!” Phichit interrupted, calling across the parking lot.  “Come here!  Yuuri’s bleeding!”

Immediately, Viktor went over to Yuuri’s side.  Yuuri was standing next to the old car, his right hand pressed over his left shoulder, with Phichit and Georgi beside him.  He pulled his hand away, showing Viktor the dark, wet smear on his palm.

Phichit pushed Yuuri’s hand back over his shoulder and placed both of his over it.  

“Keep the pressure on,” he chided Yuuri.

“It just started hurting,” Yuuri said softly.  “I swear I didn’t even feel a thing until we go out.  It was just a little twinge.  But now, now it feels like it’s on fire.”

“Get in the car,” Georgi urged them.  “You can look at it there.  Don’t do it out here in the open.”

Phichit took the front seat and Viktor and Yuuri got into the back.  Georgi turned on the overhead light and Viktor made Yuuri pull his jacket off so he could examine the wound.  Viktor was afraid he’d find a bullet hole in Yuuri’s arm, but instead the wound looked like a scrape or an abrasion.  It wasn’t deep and had almost stopped bleeding on its own, but it still looked painful and raw.

“We need to clean this up,” Viktor muttered, “and we need someplace to stay for a few hours so you can rest.  Dragging you all over Detroit with an untreated open wound on your arm is no good.”

“I can help you with both of those,” Georgi said as he started the car.  

With the adrenalin rush wearing off, Yuuri was really beginning to feel the wound to his shoulder and he grimaced as they started off.  Viktor made Yuuri lean against him and held his hand as Georgi drove.

Georgi took them to an all-night drug store and pulled into the far end of the parking lot, away from the entrance.  Phichit swiped Yuuri’s cap off of his head and dashed inside.  While they waited for Phichit to return, Georgi talked about a recent love affair gone bad.  Viktor nodded politely, but he was worried about Yuuri, who was trying to act like he wasn’t in pain and failing.  Somewhere in the craziness of this evening, Yuuri had lost his surgical mask.  Viktor wondered if Yuuri had even realized it yet. 

When Phichit came out a few moments later with an overstuffed plastic bag, Viktor could have hugged him.  As soon as Phichit was back in the car they left, heading for a location that Georgi assured them would be safe.

 

“This is as far as I can go,” Georgi said as he let them out in the parking lot of an abandoned store several miles down the road.  “There’s a motel two blocks away from here.  Just walk down this road and you’ll see it on the right.  It’s not pretty, but it’ll do for now.”

“Thank you for everything,” Viktor said as they got out, pressing several folded bills into Georgi’s hand.  Georgi smiled and pocketed the cash, then drove back the way they’d come. 

The motel was seedy, run-down, and even worse up close than from a distance.  Paint was peeling off of the sign that read HOURLY RATES.  The man behind the bulletproof glass at the front counter raised an eyebrow when Viktor asked if they could have a room for the night.

“The whole night?” he said, looking from Phichit to Yuuri, then back at Viktor.

“Yes,” Viktor replied behind a tight-lipped smile.  He just wanted to pay the man, get the key, and have someplace for them to rest for a few hours.  

A knowing smile spread across the man’s face.  “Okay,” he chuckled, “you wanna go all night, that’s alright.  You got it.”

“We need two beds,” Viktor added.  It was obvious what type of clientele usually frequented this place.

“Dude, the Marriott’s that way,” the man said, pointing towards downtown.  “You want two beds, you get two rooms.  All we got are kings.”

Yuuri buried his head against Viktor’s shoulder and whimpered softly.  Viktor could feel him shaking and he slid an arm around his waist to support and comfort him.

“Just get the one room,” Yuuri whispered.  “We shouldn’t be separated right now.”

“Fine, just the one room then,” Viktor said.  He was grateful when they finally got the key.

Once they were inside, Viktor guided Yuuri to a chair by the bed and made him sit.  Phichit took the bag, upended it on the bed, and turned on the heater.

“Okay, take off your jacket and shirt,” Viktor murmured as he shed his coat off and dropped it on the bed.  Yuuri’s fingers shook and he groaned as he slipped his jacket off again, letting it fall in a puddle on the floor.  His shirt joined it and Yuuri shivered, bare-chested, in the sudden chill. 

Phichit made two piles on the bed.  On the left were the medical supplies.  Several packages of junk food and a couple of bottles of water were on the right.  There was also a pay-per-use phone and a service card in the mix.  Nodding in grim approval of Phichit’s selections, Viktor grabbed the sterile wipes, bandages, scissors, and ointment and walked back to Yuuri.

Now that he could get a better look at the wound, he was sure it was a graze from a bullet.  The bleeding had stopped before they arrived here, but the wound still needed to be cleaned and to have ointment put on it and bandaged.  The last thing they needed was Yuuri’s shoulder getting infected.  He’d have to keep an eye on it until it healed.

Viktor closed his eyes and let out a deep breath, his hand resting on the solid warmth of Yuuri’s arm.  A couple of centimeters to the right and the bullet would have shattered Yuuri’s bone.  A few more centimeters in that direction and it would have killed him.  

Too close.  Too damn close.  

“Alright, let’s get this taken care of,” Viktor said as he opened the sterile wipes, once again forcing a cheeriness he didn’t feel.  

Across the room, Phichit opened the painkillers and one of the bottles of water.  He walked over to Yuuri, shook a few pills into Yuuri’s hand, and gave him the water.

Yuuri gave him a thin-lipped smile and murmured something that might have been a thank you before he popped the pills in his mouth and chased them with the water.  While Yuuri was distracted, Viktor gently began to dab Yuuri’s wound with one of the wipes.

Yuuri hissed and winced at the contact, involuntarily jerking his arm away from Viktor and the pain.

“Sssh, Yuuri,” Viktor soothed, reaching out and stroking Yuuri’s thigh with his other hand.  “I know it hurts, but try to hold still while I clean the wound, okay?”

Yuuri nodded mutely, taking off his glasses and resting his head in his hand while Viktor worked on his shoulder.  Viktor frowned and applied liberal amounts of antibiotic ointment to the wound, trying to be as gentle and thorough as possible.  He unrolled and cut the bandage and wound it around the graze tightly enough to keep things out but loose enough not to cut off circulation.  Yuuri held still, but he could tell it was hard for him and that it must hurt like hell.

Phichit walked out of the bathroom, Yuuri’s damp shirt in his hands.  He’d washed out most of the blood, but the jagged tear was still there.  He hung the shirt on the doorknob, then stripped down to his underwear.  He sat down heavily on the bed and opened a bag of chips.

“Okay, all done,” Viktor said as he stood up and started unbuttoning his shirt.  “Time for dinner and bed.”

Yuuri slipped off his shoes and unfastened his jeans and let them slide to the floor.  Slowly he walked to the bed, wearing only his boxer briefs, and sat down next to Phichit, who offered him some of his chips.  Viktor pulled off his jeans, folded them up and laid them on the seat of the chair where he’d hung his shirt, and came to sit down beside Yuuri, feeling drained.  Now that they finally had a moment to rest, everything was catching up to him.  If he was this tired, then Yuuri must feel even worse.  He leaned over and gave Yuuri a peck on the cheek.  Yuuri smiled and leaned against him.

“Fuck Leo and Guang Hong,” Phichit muttered, shaking his head as he passed the first bag of ships to Yuuri and opened a second one.  “I swear I’m gonna get them back for this…”

“Don’t worry about Guang Hong,” Yuuri replied softly, placing the bag in his lap with the opening towards Viktor.  “He’s young and just going along with what Leo wanted.  As for Leo, he’s taken care of.”

“How so?” Viktor asked, stroking Yuuri’s shoulder.  Yuuri shoved his hand in the bag, grabbed a couple of chips, and fed them to Viktor.

“He turned in a lit paper earlier this week,” Yuuri said.  “I wrote a worm to replace his paper with one I found online.  The paper was written by his professor’s mentor.  He’ll know right away it’s plagiarized.  And plagiarism is academic dishonesty, which gets you expelled.  The worm goes live tomorrow if I don’t stop it.”  Yuuri paused and took a drink of water, a wry smile on his face.  “Seeing as my computer’s back at the apartment and we’re stuck here, well, I guess Leo’s fucked.”

Viktor smiled and Phichit whistled low in appreciation, bumping his fist against Yuuri’s.

“So did you suspect this was a setup all along?” Viktor asked.  Both of them nodded.  Yuuri scooted closer to Viktor on the bed, resting his head against Viktor’s shoulder.  He looked like he could fall asleep at any moment.

“So why go along with it?  Why walk into it?”

Yuuri sighed and trailed his hand up Viktor’s thigh, petting him.

“It pissed me off how he kept saying horrible things about you,” Yuuri murmured.  “I didn’t like him talking shit about my boyfriend.”  Viktor put his hand over Yuuri’s and held it tight, just enjoying the feel of Yuuri’s warm hand in his.  

“So when they said they needed to change Guang Hong’s grades, I did a little probing and found out it was bullshit.  I figured he was going to talk more trash, and I was going to let them know we weren’t going to work with them anymore and be done.  I didn’t expect all this, though.”  Yuuri sighed and buried his face in Viktor’s shoulder. 

“I’m sorry.  I should have told you.”

Viktor nodded and kissed Yuuri’s hair.  

“Yes, you should have.  We didn’t have to meet with them at all, you know?  We could have ignored them or burned them from a distance.  Next time, tell me what’s going on, okay?”

“Okay, Viten’ka,” Yuuri sighed into Viktor’s shoulder.  Viktor kissed the crown of Yuuri’s hair.

“You guys remember I’m here, right?” Phichit deadpanned.  

“Yes,” Viktor laughed.  “Don’t worry, nothing’s happening tonight.”

“I got shot, remember?” Yuuri slurred.  “We’re not doing anything.”

 “How’s your arm?” Viktor asked.  “Does it still hurt?”

“Yeah, but not as much.  Still burns and stings, but not on fire.”  Yuuri yawned and snuggled closed to Viktor.  “Thank you.”

Viktor looked over at Yuuri.  His eyes were already closed and it was clear he wouldn’t be awake much longer.  He made Yuuri sit up long enough to pull down the covers, then slipped into bed with him.  A few moments later, Yuuri was asleep, curled against Viktor’s side.  Phichit sat on top of the covers, turned on the tv, muted the sound, and began flipping through the channels.

As much as he knew that Yuuri and Phichit would hate it, it was time for the three of them to leave Detroit.  It wasn’t safe here for them anymore.  Somehow, they’d have to get back to the apartment and get all their equipment and a few changes of clothes, plus the cash he knew Yuuri kept stuffed in an urn.  If they could.  All of it might be lost now.  He was certain the authorities were looking for Yuuri and Phichit, and it might be too hot to go back for any of it.  But they could worry about that later.  And he could make sure Leo and Guang Hong paid dearly for what they’d done.  Yuuri’s damage was mild in comparison to what he’d do to them.  He’d show them just what a Russian hacker could do.  _Both_ of them. 

In the morning, he’d activate the burner phone and call Chris and make the arrangements to leave.  They could deal with the fallout from everything else later.  Right now, they were safe, and that was all that mattered.  Viktor drifted off, lulled by the soft sounds of Yuuri’s breathing and the hope that things would be better for them in Toronto.

 

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you all so much for reading! Comments are worth their weight in gold, baby!
> 
> The title of this story comes from the Pet Shop Boys song by the same name. (I'm old. LOL.)


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